OLD Whidbey Life Magazine

Tag: Whidbey Island

‘What’s Happening?’ || Friday, Feb. 27 – Sunday, March 1

BY KATY SHANER
Whidbey Life Magazine Contributor
February 25, 2015

Welcome to the weekend on Whidbey. “What’s Happening” includes many weekend events Friday through Sunday. “What’s Happening” is a collaborative information guide project between the The Visitor Information Kiosk and Whidbey Life Magazine.

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 27

CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG! Shows at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 27 and Saturday Feb. 28 at Whidbey Children’s Theater (next to Langley Middle School). Get ready for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang as you’ve never seen it before! Take to the skies in the fabulous flying car, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, as the eccentric inventor Caractacus Potts takes young Jeremy & Jemima on the adventure of a lifetime! A madcap adventure full of song, dance and laughter. Bring the whole family!

Specially priced Family Night on Feb. 28, when all tickets are just $8! Adult $15 / Senior $12 / Youth $8. Tickets available at: www.whidbeychildrenstheater.org 723 Camano Ave., Langley contact.wct@gmail.com (360) 221-8707.

FORKS OVER KNIVES at UUCWI Sanctuary at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 27. Can the food we eat make us ill? Can it heal? Does it matter to the Earth? More and more, the research says “Yes!” This film, acclaimed by medical experts, has helped ignite a food-as-medicine revolution.

The film presents a radical but convincing case that modern diseases can be prevented, halted and often reversed. A panel of medical and agricultural experts will answer your questions afterwards. Sponsored by the Greening Congregations of Whidbey Island. The Unitarian Universalist Congregation is located at 20103 State Route 525, Freeland (2 miles north of Freeland) www.uucwi.org/.

The cast of Other Desert Cities: Left to Right, Heather Ogilvy, Andrew Grenier, Deana Duncan, Shelley Hartle and David Mayer. (photo courtesy of WICA)

OTHER DESERT CITIES at Whidbey Island Center for Arts playing at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27 and Saturday, Feb, 28. CLOSING WEEKEND! Pulitzer Prize finalist Jon Robin Baitz’s smart new play of high drama, serious laughter and repartee that dazzles and decimates was one of the hottest tickets on Broadway last season. Adult $22 / Senior $18 / Youth $15. Tickets: (360) 221-8268 www.wicaonline.org 565 Camano Avenue, Langley.

OTT & MURPHY WINES presents The Comedy of Simon Kaufman & Friends from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27. Simon brings a comedy club routine to the Ott & Murphy Cabaret stage. A troupe of three will join Simon for an unusual and hilarious night. Simon has performed and produced shows at Gotham Comedy Club in New York as well as the historic Ashford and Simpson Sugar bar on the upper West Side. Enjoy award-winning Ott & Murphy wines. Selections from a small plate menu are available.

See Simon online at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Niy9SvkxTQs&feature=youtu.be and http://simonkaufman.com/. Cover charge: $10 Reservations recommended (360) 221-7131 204 First Street, Langley www.swedehillcellars.com

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 28

A WHIDBEY AUDUBON FIELD TRIP at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 28. Explore one of the most scenic areas on Whidbey Island! Sunnyside Cemetery, Ebey’s Bluff & Crockett Lake. Meet at the Sunnyside Cemetery overlook parking area, Cook & Sherman Roads in Coupeville. Walk the paths in the old cemetery looking for little birds, then head down the trail past the Jacob Ebey house (built in 1854) to Ebey’s Bluff. Bald Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks, Northern Harriers and American Kestrels all hunt here. To round out the morning, we will drive to Crockett Lake to look at lots of ducks, more hawks, and possibly a short-eared owl.

Plan to walk for a couple of hours on mostly level (but maybe muddy) paths. Dress for the weather. No facilities available until we arrive at Crockett Lake. Contact Trip Leader Kim Shepard at: (360) 720-1711 kwshepard@gmail.com www.whidbeyaudubon.org/.

“Cowspiracy” is showing at The Clyde at 1 p.m.

COWSPIRACY: THE SUSTAINABILITY SECRET at The Clyde Theatre, Langley at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 28. “As eye-opening as Blackfish and as inspiring as An Inconvenient Truth, Cowspiracy may be the most important film made to inspire saving the planet.” This feature-length documentary is a must-see for anyone concerned with water quality, deforestation, global hunger or climate change.

This film is appropriate for audience members of most ages. The film runs about two hours. The screening will be followed by a brief, optional Q & A session with the presenters. Questions? (360) 966-6122 The Clyde Theater, 217 First Street, Langley. Learn more at www.whidbeyinstitute.org/cowspiracy marnie@whidbeyinstitute.org.

BEER STYLES & SAMPLES Saturday, Feb. 28 at 3 – 6 p.m. What’s a Saison? Belgium Stout? What is meant by “White Ale on the Lees”? Come find out! $5 tasting fee.

The Tipsy Gourmet Your Local Source for Imported & Domestic Cheese, Meat, Olive Oils, Wine, Beer, Hard Cider, & Spirits… other Taste Treats!

Open Tuesday – Saturday 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Closed Sunday & Monday, 221 2nd St. Suite 9A, Langley. (360) 221-4520. Langley Village. www.facebook.com/thetipsygourmet.

MARIMBA CAFE #2 Saturday, Feb 28, 6 to 9 p.m. Shake it up with us! Dine & dance to lively, energetic African music with Sarungano & Friends, Moyo, Shamwari, & Mweya. Donation $5-10 at the door. Proceeds will benefit the Matanho Project, a non-profit organization continuing its cross-cultural exchange with Zimbabwe.

With the efforts from our community and our local musicians, we plan to donate instruments to Zimbabwean schoolchildren. Rubatano Center’s Marimba Cafe, in collaboration with Northwest Language & Cultural Center, will round out our event with former Whidbey Rice Chef Kym Saephan’s food favorites, including Veggie Roll, Brown Rice, Pad Thai & Red Lentil Soup.

Plan to purchase your delicious dinner at the cafe. Beverages & desserts will also be available for purchase. For more information, contact Dana Moffett at: marimba@whidbey.com, website at www.rubatano.com. Coupeville Rec Hall, 901 NW Alexander St. in Coupeville

SUNDAY MARCH 1

Pianist Sheila Weidendorf (photo courtesy of the artist.)

IN CONCERT: SHEILA WEIDENDORF WITH MEMBERS OF ISLAND CONSORT Treat yourself to an afternoon of music from the (mostly) Classical era, presented by Whidbey Island Center for the Arts Classical Music Series on Sunday, March 1 at 2 p.m.

This program features music by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Hummel, with one throwback to the Baroque in a violin/piano sonata by Johann Sebastian Bach. With pianist Sheila Weidendorf, violinists Cynthia Morrow & Brian Kenney, flutist Dyanne Harshman, cellist James Hinkley, and violist Linda Morris. Adults $20 / Seniors $15 / Students $12.

PianoBar is open at 1 p.m. and will feature Peter Morton at the piano. Tickets: (360) 221-8268 www.wicaonline.org Whidbey Island Center of the Arts 565 Camano Avenue Langley, info@wicaonline.org

SUNDAY MUSIC AT BLOOMS WINERY TASTE FOR WINE & ART Al Benson & Arne Bergstrom Sunday, March 1 from 3 to 5 p.m. Arne Bergstrom and Al Benson will be performing songs from traditional folk music, folk revival from the 60s and 70s and some current folk style songs.

This is the last weekend for the February art show that features the contemporary works of Kim Tinuviel and mixed media shadow boxes of Janet Pheifer. March and April will feature Carol Rhodes and Sharon Tryon in our annual “Celebrate Mother Earth” show, which opens on March 6.

Available for private parties too! No cover, no minimums. Just fabulous wines & great music! Bayview Corner Cash Store, 5603 Bayview Rd. 360-321-0515 www.bloomswinery.com.

THE VISITOR INFORMATION KIOSK ADVERTISERS HELP US WELCOME YOU TO WHIDBEY ISLAND. PLEASE VISIT THEM WHILE YOU VISIT OUR FAIR ISLE.

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Whidbey Life Magazine

Whidbey Telecom WiFire Coffee Bar

Blooms Winery “Taste for Wine”

Whidbey Island Vintners

Harbor Inn

Whidbey Island Winery

Whidbey Island Bank

Got an event you’d like to see on What’s Happening? Make sure to put it on the Whidbey Life Magazine Calendar: https://www.whidbeylifemagazine.org/submit-your-event/.

The Visitor Information Kiosk is funded by the Greater Freeland Area and Langley Chambers of Commerce and What’s Happening is prepared by Katy Shaner, Manager and Volunteer Coordinator, contact Katy at ktshaner@whidbey.com.

Since 2008, the Visitor Kiosk has welcomed over 22,000 visitors to Whidbey. The island offers a wealth of activities, places to stay, eateries, shopping and an abundance of the natural environment to enjoy and appreciate. Welcome and enjoy your visit. Do come back.
Event contributions from Katy Shaner, Whidbey Life Magazine – www.whidbeylifemagazine.org and drewslist – drewslist@whidbey.com.

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CLICK HERE to read more WLM stories and blogs. Have a great story idea? Let us know! info@whidbeylifemagazine.org

WLM stories and blogs are copyrighted and all rights are reserved. Linking is permitted. To request permission to use or reprint content from this site, email info@whidbeylifemagazine.org.

February 10, 2015
WOW! Stories Returns to WICA on March 13 & 14 for Annual Celebration of Whidbey Women

February 9, 2015

New this year, WOW! Stories spans two days, two different shows to meet demand

Back for its fourth year, the annual WOW! Stories has become one of Whidbey Island’s most popular and well-loved benefit shows at WICA, featuring riveting talks and moving performances from Whidbey’s most interesting and inspiring women. New this year, WOW! Stories is offering a choice of Friday evening, March 13^th; or Saturday March 14^th; with a different slate of speakers and performers weaving a web of intimacy and delight at each show.

“We keep selling out each year before we even get the posters up, so we’re trying something new in 2015. We’ve split it into two shows to allow more people to come to the event,” said Lynn Willeford, one of the original founding producers of the event and a speaker coach for participants.

Presenters span six decades in age, and their interests are just as varied. Among the presenters you’ll find adventurers, artists, professors, inventors, entrepreneurs, singers, musicians, students, a farmer, a restauranteur, a “green” funeral director, a poet, a storyteller, a bodyworker, a theologian, a physical anthropologist and even an NCIS Special Agent. They will talk about their passions in life — and they won’t always be what you expect!

Two Days, Two Different Shows at WICA

Friday, March 13 @ 7:00 – 10:00 pm

Saturday, March 14 @ 11:00 am- 2:00 pm

(Doors open 30 minutes prior to each show.)

Friday’s event features talks and performances by Sharon Betcher, Sharon Daloz Parks, Kathy Fox, Lucinda Herring, Annie Jesperson, Joanne Keefe, Deborah Koff-Chapin, Haley McConnaughey, Rainey, Shannon Stalpaert and Debora Valis.

Saturday’s event features Judith Adams, Sarah Boin, The Carolina Parrots, Julie Gersten, Marion Henny, Jill Johnson, Jenn Jurriaans, Hannah McConnaughey, Mary K. Sandford, Jean Shaw, Aleah Stacey and jazz musicians from South Whidbey High School.

Tickets are $25 for each show and available through the WICA box office at 221-8268 or www.wicaonline.org.You can buy for one show or both. Tickets include light fare and reception on Friday night, and a locally-made box lunch on Saturday. Snacks and refreshments will be offered for sale by Whidbey Island Nourishes (W.I.N.)

Langley Businesses Celebrate WOW!

Some Langley shops, restaurants and businesses will offer specials for the WOW audience on Friday & Saturday, March 13-14. Look for the red WOW signs in participating store windows to find amazing offers. Find more information about participating businesses from Langley Main Street Association at 221-6686.

The story behind WOW! Stories

What started off as an idea by Diana Lindsay that “within every Whidbey Woman there’s a TED Talk,” evolved to be become a uniquely Whidbey version of the famed TED conference. Hundreds of Islanders and visitors – women and men, young and old— continue to gather for this annual benefit for WICA.

The event is produced by a volunteer team of friends who call themselves Seriously Fun Productions: Diana Lindsay, Rene Neff, Lynn Willeford, Debora Valis, Shannon Arndt and Heather Racicot. They take their name very seriously, and can be heard laughing at production meetings reciting the team motto: “We don’t do it if it isn’t fun!”

For many, the WOW! Stories promise of “stories worth sharing” calls them to attend the event year after year.Last year, it was one the fastest-selling performances in WICA’s history, selling out more than a month before the show.

WICA’s executive director Stacie Burgua adds, “Today’s society needs real-life heroes — heroes who inspire us to do more and be more, and who we can relate to. I think the success of WOW! stems from discovering the heroes who are living in our own community. They are people we might know and we’d love to learn a bit more about them.”

Don’t delay, get your tickets

A limited number of tickets is still available through the WICA box office at 221-8268 or www.wicaonline.org.

More information is available at: www.wowstories.net or at www.facebook.com/WowStories. Thanks to WhidbeyTV, videos of past presentations are available online at the WOW!Stories website.

Featured photo: Amy Wheeler, executive director of Hedgebrook, talked at WOW! Stories 2014 about her passion for theater (image credit: WhidbeyTV).

February 9, 2015
“What’s Happening” | Feb. 13-15 and 20-22

BY KATY SHANER
Whidbey Life Magazine Contributor
February 11, 2015

The Visitor Information Kiosk welcomes you to Whidbey Island and the many places to visit while you are here. In this handout you will find events and activities happening the next two weekends.

Since 2008, the Visitor Kiosk has welcomed over 22,000 visitors to Whidbey. The island offers a wealth of activities, places to stay, eateries, shopping and an abundance of the natural environment to enjoy and appreciate. Welcome and enjoy your visit. Do come back.

The Visitor Information Kiosk is funded by the Greater Freeland Area and Langley Chambers of Commerce and prepared by Katy Shaner, Manager and Volunteer Coordinator, contact Katy at ktshaner@whidbey.com.

Event contributions from Whidbey Life Magazine www.whidbeylifemagazine.org and drewslist@whidbey.com

FRIDAY – FEBRUARY 13, 2014

LOVE SONGS II “WHAT MATTERS MOST” Chanteuse performs this Friday, February 13^th 7:00 at Island Church in Langley (6th & Cascade Ave.) Saturday, February 14^th 2:00 at United Methodist Church in Coupeville (608 N. Main St.) Fundraiser for Mother Mentors of Whidbey Island. Come enjoy a full program of Love Songs. Suggested donations: $15 Adult, $12.50 Senior, Military, $10 Children Contact: Cheryl Veblen 360-929-5379 cveblen@wildblue.net

H&H SPAGHETTI DINNER & VOLUNTEER KICK-OFF This Friday, February 13^th 4:30 – 7:30 Langley United Methodist Church Fellowship Hall. Time to share the love at the Hearts and Hammers annual spaghetti dinner & volunteer kick-off. The dinner will be starting earlier this year. $5 for adults and $3 for children. You can enjoy all the spaghetti you want, including regular & gluten-free noodles, salad & dessert. Hearts & Hammers mission is to bring needed repairs to homeowners who physically or financially are unable to complete the work alone. There is no cost to the homeowners, thanks to community donations, volunteers and in kind donations of material from our local lumber yards and supply retailers. Volunteers of all levels who are willing to work are welcome to sign up for the workday, the first Saturday in May. Volunteers can sign up at the dinner or on-line at: www.heartsandhammers.com

The cast of Other Desert Cities: Left to Right, Heather Ogilvy, Andrew Grenier, Deana Duncan, Shelley Hartle and David Mayer. (photo courtesy of WICA)

OTHER DESERT CITIES Friday, February 13^th – Saturday, February 28^th at Whidbey Island Center for the Arts. Pulitzer Prize finalist Jon Robin Baitz’s smart new play of high drama, serious laughter and repartee that dazzles and decimates was one of the hottest tickets on Broadway last season. Friday & Saturday 7:30. Sunday Matinee 2:00. Adult $22, Senior $18, Youth $15. Matinee $15. Piano Bar. Join WICA in Zech Hall an hour before each performance for libations, snacks, and music from local pianists. Art Show: Friday, February 13^th “Abstraction”. Tickets: www.wicaonline.org 360-221-8268 WICA 565 Camano Avenue Langley info@wicaonline.org

OPEN MIC NIGHT at Blooms Winery Taste for Wine & Art Friday, February 13^th 6:30 – 8. Blooms Winery offers the stage to musicians, poets, comedians and improv on Open Mic Night at Blooms Winery Taste for Wine & Art at the Bayview Corner. Open Mic Night is the second Friday of each month. These Open Mics provide an opportunity in a casual and intimate setting for musicians to perform live and play a song or two or for a poet to recite some of their verse. Interested in being included in the evening’s talent showcase? Call 360-321-0515 for more details. Drop-ins are accepted. Blooms located in the historic Bayview Cash Store at Bayview Corner and are open Thursday to Monday. www.bloomswinery.com 360-321-0515

“THE WIZARDS OF WEEPY ISLE” a true story of magic. Introducing Nermak, the spoken word lyricist of Space and Time, and Lucky Johnny KOTU, the hilarious and sentimental Ukelalien, and, of course Cloud Girl, Lightning Boy, The Wizards, a Lost Soul, and Fuzzy Leopard Mouse! February 13^th and 14^th. Doors open at 6:15. Showtime: 7:00. February 15^th (Sunday matinee) Doors open at 1:15. Showtime: 2:00. The Black Box Theater Island County Fairgrounds Tickets: $20 Adults, $11 Youth (under 15). Tickets online at: wowi.brownpapertickets.com or at The Door

SATURDAY – FEBRUARY 14, 2015

RED WINE & CHOCOLATE This annual event takes place at five venues, where local winemakers and distillers will be pouring a selection of exquisite hand crafted wines and spirits paired with specially selected chocolates. The event is on both Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 days of. Purchase online at: www.brownpapertickets.com/event/903507 Participating wineries include: Blooms Winery, Holmes Harbor Cellars, Whidbey Island Distillery, Spoiled Dog Winery & Comforts of Whidbey. Visit the website at: www.whidbeyislandvintners.org

WHIDBEY ISLAND WINERY “Vintage Wines & Valentines” Grab your sweetheart and take a stroll down Memory Lane and sip vintages of years past. Saturday – Monday, February 14^th – 16^th 11 – 6:00. Weekend special: 20% off event wines! 5237 Langley Rd., Langley www.whidbeyislandwinery.com 360-221-2040

WHIDBEY ART GALLERY presents “LOVE & NATURE” Featured New Artist: Mary McLeod, Calligraphy. Featured Artist: Linda Schwarz, Photography. This exhibit will run through February 220 2nd Street, Langley www.whidbeyartgallery.com 360-221-7675.

OTT & MURPHY WINES “A SWEETHEARTS’ VALENTINES NIGHT” with Siri & Steve 6:45 and 8:15. This special Valentine’s event features the sweet blending of Siri and Steve’s unique styles into one celebration of love songs. Ott & Murphy Cabaret. Award-wining Ott & Murphy wines and selections from a small plate menu. Cover charge: $12 Reservations recommended 360-221-7131 204 First Street, Langley www.swedehillcellars.com

WHIDBEY ISLAND NOURISHES “A Benefit, Dinner & Auction” Saturday, February 14^th at 6:00 at Useless Bay Coffee Company 121 Second St, Langley. Jim Freeman, Conductor of Fun, Conducting! Divine Dining Created by Des Rock & Dan Fulton! Billy the Celloist with Marvelous Music! Tantalizing Auction Items! Tickets: $90 per person Seating is limited. For tickets, donation, info, contact Tiffany at 360-221-7787 whidbeytiffany@gmail.com www.whidbeyislandnourishes.org/

PRUNING FOR HIGH FRUIT PRODUCTION A fruit tree pruning workshop for maximum fruit production takes place from 11- 1 on Saturday, February 14^th. Gary Ingram will discuss and demonstrate the best times to prune different types of trees, organic pest and disease control and fertilization, tree selection for maximum fruit production and tree health. Workshop is at the South Whidbey Tilth 2812 Thompson Road. There will be classroom time as well as a demonstration in the orchard. Cost is $8 for South Whidbey Tilth members. $15 for nonmembers. Register with Michael Seraphinoff at 360-544-2278 or mjseraph@whidbey.net. Dress for the weather. Bring pruning tools. Complimentary hot beverages will be available. Following the workshop a hot lunch will be served and a work party for those able to stay and help mulch around the fruit trees.

SUNDAY – FEBRUARY 15, 2015

SEATTLE WOMEN’S CHORUS “Reel Women” a movie-themed extravaganza! 3-5:00. Join Seattle Women’s Chorus for a musical tribute to some of the silver screen’s most famous and scintillating women. Tickets are $25 and are available at Wind and Tide & CADA office in Oak Harbor, bayleaf in Coupeville, Useless Bay Coffee & Moonraker Books in Langley, and Pickles Deli in Clinton. www.cadacanhelp.org 360-675-7057 Sponsored by: Whidbey Island Bank, Windermere Real Estate/South Whidbey, Puget Sound Energy. South Whidbey High School Performing Arts Center 5675 Maxwelton Road, Langley. Benefitting Citizens Against Domestic & Sexual Abuse (CADA)

SUNDAY MUSIC AT BLOOMS WINERY TASTE FOR WINE & ART Enjoy Sunday afternoons with live music. It’s time for an afternoon of jazz with Gary Way and Baby Bahia from 3-5! Come have a glass of award winning wine and listen in for some fine jazz and Latin Jazz favorites. No cover, no minimums. Just fabulous wines and great music! Our art show for February features the contemporary works of Kim Tinuviel, with photography, encaustic and more. Also presented will be mixed media shadow boxes of Janet Pheifer. Available for private parties too! No cover, no minimums. Just fabulous wines & great music! Bayview Corner Cash Store, 5603 Bayview Rd. 360-321-0515 www.bloomswinery.com

SECOND WEEKEND

SATURDAY – FEBRUARY 21

LANGLEY MYSTERY WEEKEND 2015 “It’s No Laughing Murder” Saturday & Sunday, February 21^st and 22^nd Saturday 10 – 5, Sunday 10 – 4. Solution and prizes at 5:15 on Sunday, February 22^nd at Langley Middle School Auditorium (need not be present to win). “Langley’s night life promises to get livelier when a new comedy club opens at the old Dog House in this little village by the sea. Everyone in town is polishing their best comic routine for the auditions, but when the new club’s has-been headliner is found dead on the doorstep before the club even opens, “It’s No Laughing Murder. Langley will need all the help it can get to solve the 31st in a long line of murders to befall this otherwise peaceful town each February. If you want to help solve the murder mystery, and possibly win some great prizes, come to Langley for Mystery Weekend! More info, at Langley Chamber of Commerce www.visitlangley.com 360-221-6765. Clue maps & copies of the Langley Gazette available for purchase starting Saturday, February 21^st at 10 at the Chamber of Commerce 208 Anthes Street in Langley $10 Adults, $8 Seniors, Youth & Military. A family-friendly activity!

DRUM + DANCE Saturday, February 21^st 7 – 10 at a NEW LOCATION Unity of Whidbey 5671 Crawford Road, Langley Dance to an eclectic blend of live hand drums, unique percussion, bass, guitar + didjeridoo with Wade, Joseph, Rodger, Stephan, Eric + Ranchman $5 to $15, sliding scale + kids are free! BYO water + stay hydrated! For more information, contact Wade at: 360-320-1172 earthrhythms@whidbey.com

SUNDAY – FEBRUARY 22

ISLAND CONSORT “If Music Be The Food Of Love: Renaissance To Romance” Sunday, February 22^nd at 3:00 Trinity Lutheran Church 18341 State Route 525, Freeland. Island Consort performs music from the Renaissance to the Romantic era, both vocal and instrumental, in this musical celebration of love. Spend your afternoon basking in works by Monteverdi, Arbeau, De Selma, Susato, Boismortier, Schubert & culminating with Brahms’ Liebeslieder. With very special guests Danielle Reutter-Harrah (soprano) and Kyle Sampson (guitar). $20 Adults $10 Youth at the door. More info, www.islandconsort.org call Sheila Weidendorf 360- 321-5294

For more events check the Whidbey Life Magazine Calendar.

OUR ADVERTISERS HELP THE VISITOR INFORMATION KIOSK WELCOME YOU TO WHIDBEY ISLAND. PLEASE VISIT THEM WHILE YOU VISIT OUR FAIR ISLE.

Blooms Winery “Taste for Wine”

Whidbey Island Vintners Association

Whidbey Island Winery

Harbor Inn

WiFire Coffee Bar

Whidbey Life Magazine

Whidbey Island Bank

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CLICK HERE to read more entertaining and informative WLM stories and blogs.

WLM stories and blogs are copyrighted and all rights are reserved. Linking is permitted. To request permission to use or reprint content from this site, email info@whidbeylifemagazine.org.

February 6, 2015
Creativity Café | Are We There Yet?

BY DEB LUND
February 4, 2015

I’m already there! Those dreams, those thoughts, those ideas that couldn’t possibly happen, happened!

That’s how a blog post of mine started out a few years ago. In that post, I went on to ask why no one had told me. And then I recalled comments others had made at the time. People had been telling me. People have been telling me this—I’m already there. There! That elusive place I had wanted to reach. And I always thought, and still think at times, no, there’s so far yet to go. (I couldn’t possibly list all there is to do to get where I want to go.)

Why do we think we’re never enough? What would we do if we were enough?

I remember being perplexed back then, wondering, why now, with no extra accolades, possibilities, or goals reached, did I come to the conclusion that I’m already there?

And why in the world—when we have these epiphanies—can’t we hand on to that feeling of success, accomplishment, peace, joy, or whatever it is that helps us understand that we’re already enough?

Why haven’t I hung on to that feeling ever since then?

The answer to that has never been clear, well, except for when I stop and intentionally see what is in my life. If I could just remember to take inventory a little more often. You’ve had those insights, too, right? Those ones that are crystal clear and then vanish?

What I do know now is that the epiphany involved figuring out what was real and what was childish dreaming. I don’t mean that as a judgment. I actually mean that my dreams were child-like in my expectations of how they would happen. Reflecting on my former dreams and my expectations of how they would come about brings with it an epiphany: the dreams were true and came true; it’s the expectations that were false.

Big dreams are not childish. What’s childish is not seeing the realization of a dream because the details aren’t the ones I envisioned. I didn’t recognize them because they didn’t come true exactly as I planned them. The world kept going on with its business. No one stopped me in the streets. Somehow all the other aspects of my life that I thought would get easier only got more crowded. And what about that idea that I would be filled with unbelievable joy? What happened to that?

It’s time to take that inventory I mentioned… I wanted to live “out west.” I wanted to adopt. I wanted to write books and get published. It’s here! And so are the dirty dishes, the trying teenagers, the dog who pesters me for walks, the aches and pains, the requested revisions (confession: I love revision). Still, the dream, it happened. It just came with some annoying details I didn’t expect. If dreams have fine print, I clearly didn’t read it.

I can focus on not having or I can focus on having. I’m choosing having. Kid issues, schedules, health concerns, financial obligations, dealing with the business end of writing and publishing. So much on my plate. So much to complain about. But they are all the result of getting what I asked for!

Be careful what you ask for. It’s just an old saying that doesn’t apply today, right?

So, what was that dream you dreamed? The one that actually came true, but in disguise? What’s in your life now that you could only visualize before?

Don’t always think about the next, and the next, and the next thing you want. Don’t buy into the gotta have this, this, this…

Look at yourself. Look at where you are. Where you really are if you don’t buy into the poor me stuff.

You had a dream, however big or little it may seem to you now, and you did it. You changed something in your life. You became more you. In the middle of the mess of your life, you can hold on to that dream and to your fulfillment of it. Own it. It’s yours, and don’t ever toss it aside for the more glamorous elusive one.

You can have that one, too. In fact—take another look!—I bet you already have it.

I remember playing baseball with my dad as a kid. He would fire the ball into my glove and I learned to catch as a means of self-defense. Sometimes I was sure there was no way I’d catch a wild throw of his (intentionally wild—he was a star amateur player), but a leap or jump at just the right height or in the right direction, and that ball would surprise me as it slammed itself into my glove. Not the outcome I anticipated, but there was no time to hang on to that glorious catch. I was immediately focused on the next throw, the next catch, the next dream.

Celebrate! Take the time to acknowledge the fulfillment of your dreams. Keep your eyes and your glove open. Sometimes it stings and burns, but there you’ll find it—your dream, right there in your hand.

You’re Already There!

You figured that out before you got to the end here, didn’t you… without me even mentioning the G word. You know. Gratitude.

Deb Lund is the creator of Fiction Magic: Card Tricks & Tips for Writers. She keeps chasing after dreams, some of her own, and some for her coaching clients who enjoy watching her get as excited over their success as she does her own. Check out her website at www.deblund.com, send her a note at deb@deblund.com, or just remember that you’re already there.

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CLICK HERE to read more entertaining and informative WLM stories and blogs.

WLM stories and blogs are copyrighted and all rights are reserved. Linking is permitted. To request permission to use or reprint content from this site, email info@whidbeylifemagazine.org.

February 4, 2015
“Advice for a Newcomer” by Sheryl Clough | Whidbey Writes February 2015

February 4, 2015

Whidbey Writes is a collaboration between the Northwest Institute of Literary Arts (NILA) and Whidbey Life Magazine (WLM). Its purpose is to give WLM readers an opportunity to enjoy short fiction and poetry by writers who have a connection to Whidbey Island. Congratulations to Sheryl, she is the second writer featured in Whidbey Writes and we’re pleased to be able to share her poem with you.

We look forward to publishing the original work of selected winners at the beginning of each month as part of Whidbey Writes. NILA congratulates Sheryl and thanks volunteer editors Heather Anderson, Mureall Hebert and Chris Spencer, who review submissions on solstices and equinoxes and pass on the work they enjoy most to Whidbey Life Magazine for publication online and in print. To find out more about Whidbey Writes and the submission criteria, visit the NILA website.

Advice for the Newcomer

— for Betty Freeman

If you get lost, don’t worry —
you’re on an island. How far
can it be to a familiar turn,
the road beckoning with its
well-worn sign “Lucy Lane,”
luminous fireweed to light your way.

And what if you should stay lost?
Nothing tragic there — buy an ice cream
from a roadside stand, walk the waterfront
past the boy-and-his-dog statue. Browse
among local books, chat up the locals and
dance in the street as stars reveal
what dogs and sailors have always known.

You may find that Lost is where
you’d rather be. Worry will have
caught a bus by now, riding back
to the mainland and over-scheduled
days, while you inhale sweet peas’
aroma and eat sausage on a stick.

To critics, you can always claim
getting lost was part of the plan.

— Sheryl Clough

Photos courtesy of the author

Sheryl Clough is a Whidbey writer, editor and photographer. She founded Write Wing Publishing, which produced the travel poetry anthology “Through A Distant Lens,” available from CreateSpace. Sheryl’s chapbook “Ring of Fire, Sea of Stone” won a prize at the 2013 San Gabriel Valley Literary Festival. You can find out more about Sheryl at: http://scatchetpoet.blogspot.com/

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February 4, 2015
Joann Quintana Kills Two Birds with Release of First CD “Sometimes a Sinner”

BY RUSSELL CLEPPER
Whidbey Life Magazine Contributor
Jan. 28, 2015

When Whidbey Island resident and singer songwriter Joann Quintana recently released her first CD, “Sometimes a Sinner,” she simultaneously reached double mileposts in her pursuit of two of her foremost passions: songwriting and starry nights. She can spend more time talking about the latter than the former, once she gets going.

The first song on the recording, “Dark, Dark, Dark,” is an ode to the disappearing darkness on our planet. A portion of album sales will go to the Dark Sky Association (DSA), which works to preserve the remaining dark areas on the earth where stars are still unobscured by ground light.

Her fascination with the dark night sky began on a trip to farm in southern Illinois, her home state. “We stopped the car, turned off the engine and stepped outside. It was completely black. I couldn’t see my hand in front of my face, like in a cave. Someone said, ‘Look up!’ Oh my gosh, the stars. It was breathtaking!”

A visit much later in life to Truckee, California in the Sierras, convinced her that cities and towns could enact laws that would protect the view of the night sky while keeping lighting where needed in inhabited areas. That’s how she eventually became involved with the DSA.

Quintana relaxes at home with her dog Mocha (photo by Martha McCartney)

Quintana has loved music since childhood, but her songwriting talent remained hidden until later in life. That has resulted in a bittersweet emotion for the songwriter during her moment of personal triumph; her late father, Elwood S. Hamick, to whom the album is dedicated, did not live long enough to hear her original songs.

“My dad knew I loved music” Quintana said. ”He loved Hank Williams and Bill Monroe. But he never heard one of my original songs before he died. My sister and I sang a Hank Williams song at his funeral.”

She strayed from music for many years after that. “I didn’t play the guitar for years and years,” she said. “After awhile, there was this big hole in my life and I had to get back to music. In Seattle, I started taking guitar lessons and continued for several years. I also began playing music with other people.”

Then one day, the words to a song just popped into her head like they were falling from the sky.

“I was standing in my kitchen cooking,” she said. “I had read some article about how our names can influence us. I was daydreaming, thinking if you had a name and your name was your destiny. I imagined a woman with a hardscrabble existence. What would it be like for her? Then I thought of Iris Dement! I have always loved her name. I wondered if I was named Iris Dement, would I be a different person?”

The song that resulted is called “Named For a Flower” and is on Quintana’s new CD. With names such as Hank Williams, Bill Monroe and Iris Dement figuring prominently in her personal history, it is no surprise to learn what sort of sound to expect from this late-blooming singer songwriter.

“Sometimes a Sinner” falls well within the Americana genre of music, which is primarily a roots Country and Appalachian mountain-music inspired folk approach. However, eclecticism is a hallmark of the genre and many other forms of American music, or at least elements of it, sometimes fall under its wide umbrella. Quintana describes her sound as rootsy and bluesy “with hints of alt country, rockabilly and salsa.”

CD cover artwork of the angel from “Saint to Sinner”

The CD was recorded and produced at Empty Sea Studios in Seattle by Roots Channel founder Michael Thomas Connolly. Connolly sings and plays no less than ten different instruments on the recording and, as producer, is the person who conjured Quintana’s vision of her songs into reality.

“Being a singer-songwriter is hard because it’s like being an orchestra conductor who doesn’t have an orchestra,” she said.”I can hear what I want a song to sound like, but I’m not a multi-instrumentalist so I can’t produce the sound I want without quite a few other musicians. I would play and sing a song for Michael and explain [to him] what I wanted it to sound like. He would pick up one of his many instruments and say,’you mean like this?’ Gasp. ‘Yes!’”

The result is a recording that features rich, acoustic-based arrangements with some fine dobro and mandolin passages that adeptly support Quintana’s voice and vision of her songs. She said, “I can’t say enough good things about working with someone as talented as Michael. The authenticity of the sound of ‘Sometimes A Sinner’ is because of [him].”

Quintana’s voice teacher, Jana Szabo, also appears on the CD singing harmony on the track “Red Hot Planet.” Quintana gives Szabo credit for helping her develop her singing skills. “I am a better singer than I was two years ago,” she said. “Thanks to Jana’s instruction and my own hard work.”

For more information, please visit:

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/joannhamickquintana
reverbnation.com/joannhamickquintana

Image at top: Joann Quintana

Russell Clepper is a singer-songwriter who plies his trade locally and around the country. He also is a substitute teacher for the Oak Harbor School District.

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January 28, 2015
In Search of Truth and Beauty | The Nature of Stuff

BY JONI TAKANIKOS
Jan. 28, 2015

I will be the first to admit how much I love my possessions, my beloved treasures that hold beauty and memory. They reside in two places at once, past and present, straddling the worlds both visible and unseen.

Emerald Isle

To prepare for a three-month sabbatical to Ireland in 2011, I gave away many of my possessions. For those treasured items I could not part with, I found a few friends willing to store a few boxes. When I returned home from my sabbatical, my life had been changed profoundly; I wanted to follow that thread of change. Part of my new journey seemed to include the need to be unencumbered by nothing more than a few suitcases.

I inhabited my beautiful island home by house-sitting for friends. This allowed me to have periods of travel: back to Ireland for two months, California for six weeks, Costa Rica for a month, the Netherlands and France for a short stay. Grand adventures, indeed! As a house-sitter I was surrounded by other peoples’ things, and that gave me a chance to reflect on “stuff” I had no personal history with. I have always loved looking at curios of all sorts, and it was lovely to explore my friends’ collections of objet d’art, books, paintings and photos.

Corner songs (photo by Joni Takanikos)

I especially love the look of a shelf or table that has been lovingly curated. It becomes an altar for my eyes and heart to visit, and it allows me to lose track of my own wandering thoughts in a way that brings me back home to myself. I was with a friend at SAM many years ago and we were “lost” in an exhibit, a room full of cabinets of curios, carefully curated. As we silently made our way through the exhibit, gazing through the glass onto shelves that told story after story through the arrangement of the objects within, my friend turned to me and whispered, “This exhibit reminds me of your house.”

I loved her comment and took it to heart. I have a fondness for putting things together, letting each curious object—whether a book, photo, rock or dozens of other possible things—be in relationship to each other, playing with space and proximity. Once I had some interesting metal noise makers from a New Year’s Eve party that found their way around different parts of the house and each spot in turn was enlivened by their silent promise of noise making.

Curios in relationship (photo by Joni Takanikos)

Most of my “stuff” at the present time occupies one small room. While I love most everything in my room, I exercise the need to fill a bag or two of stuff, even things I love, to drop off at Good Cheer or give to friends. This cycle needs to happen at least every couple of months. You see, I have wonderful friends who frequently give me lovely things that I need to incorporate into my room. Without this pruning of possessions, this careful curation of my “life exhibit,” I can start to feel crowded, heavy and dense, just like my room would. Perhaps this is why “sacred space” is often so spare. It makes room for contemplation.

In my zeal to not become surrounded by stacks of old New Yorker magazines, lovely birthday cards containing proof of love and affection, and twenty sweaters instead of ten, I have donated or given away many things I may later even come to regret. But in the end this pruning back is necessary and must remain continuous throughout the year to deal with this growing thicket of “stuff.”

Love, memory and dreams (photo by Joni Takanikos)

My dearest friend, Virginia Burja Simpson, while discussing the dilemma of stuff, said, ” All I want to leave behind is a poem and a puff of pink smoke.” In that spirit, I offer you one poem on the subject (and admit I have more than a boxful of them).

UNTITLED

“It’s not the load, it’s how you carry it.”—Lena Horne

I have carried a
handful of letters
for over thirty years.
Full of pain, misery,
despair and love.
I keep them like
sentries at the gate
of The Trauma.

They have migrated
to different houses
through the years
but have stayed in the
same nondescript
brown and beige file box.
They swim in the too-large
box, but at least they have
plenty of air to breathe.

Right now they ride in
the trunk of my car, traveling
the island roads, and the
potholes of my long driveway.
These letters I cannot
seem to let go of, although
the paper will eventually crumble,
the plastic file box may go on forever.

-Joni Takanikos

So, if you find you have stuff you are not using, why not donate it to a local charity like Good Cheer, Habitat for Humanity, Waif or Senior Thrift? And while I would not advocate a nomadic lifestyle for everyone, I suspect most of us could be better served by lightening our load.

Now just imagine this blog ends in a puff of pink smoke.

Joni Takanikos lives, writes, performs, teaches yoga and collects some lovely “stuff” right here on Whidbey Island.

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January 28, 2015
South Whidbey School District Garden Program to receive over $44,000 from community donations and Goose Community Grocer

Jan. 21, 2015

In October 2014, Goosefoot, a local non-profit community development organization, offered up a challenge grant of $15,000 from the Goose Community Grocer in support of the South Whidbey School District Garden Program.

Not only was the grocery store’s challenge met, it raised over $22,000 in donations from the community. And the Goose Grocer has decided to match the whole amount, for a grand total of $44,726, that will go directly to the school garden program to use during the 2014/2015 school year. The store is also offering a $15,000 challenge grant for each of the next two school years—2015/2016 and 2016/2017.

The public is invited to join in a “big check” ceremony on Thursday, January 22, 4 pm at The Goose Grocer, where the donation will be given to the program. The Goose is located at 14485 SR 525 on South Whidbey Island.

The Goose Grocer is owned by Goosefoot. “The Goose is now in a position to give back and the school garden program appealed to us on many different levels,” says Sandra Whiting, Goosefoot’s executive director. “Goosefoot is currently researching way to support our local food system. Instilling an appreciation of fresh vegetables at an early age will have ripple effects for years to come.”

The South Whidbey School District Garden Program is the result of a unique collaboration amongst several Whidbey Island non-profits: Good Cheer Food Bank, Goosefoot, South Whidbey School District, Whidbey Institute, and Whidbey Island Nourishes (WIN).

Fresh produce from the school gardens was first served in the cafeterias at the end of the last school year in May 2014. This school year, over 400 pounds of fresh veggies have already been served at lunch at all three schools—in the salad bar, as roasted vegetables, and in soup.

Funding from the three-year challenge grant cycle will allow for current and additional garden program staff to work with the school district in making the program self-sustainable. The gardens are used by faculty to teach science, math, and English…all in concert with the core curriculum.

For more information on the South Whidbey School District Garden Program, visit their website at https://whidbeyschoolgardens.wordpress.com/

To read more about this program in the WLM Feature “Big wHoop” by Dianna MacLeod, click here.

Goosefoot is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and enhancing the rural character of Whidbey Island through projects that support the local economy and promote learning and community. Their mission is to build a sense of place and community, preserve rural traditions, enhance local commerce, and help create a healthy, sustainable future for South Whidbey Island.

Goosefoot can be reached at (360) 321-4145 or at info@goosefoot.org. http://www.goosefoot.org

January 21, 2015
Three Little Words…HAPPY NEW YEAR!

BY LES McCARTHY
January 1, 2015

HAPPY NEW YEAR…2015! It seems just like yesterday that it was 2014!

No other three little words bear such potential and promise as HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Well, none other than…Seize the Day! Go For It! You Look Mahvelous! I’m So Sorry. Let’s Get Married! I Love You!

I stand corrected! When you think about it, there are a LOT of powerful three words phrases!

However, HAPPY NEW YEAR—the image it brings to mind is one of newness and rebirth (in a multitude of ways). It’s the basic “do-over” and we get to do it EVERY YEAR!

A rainbow leads the way into a new year on Whidbey Island (photo by David Welton)

The New Year lies before us like a pasture after a heavy snowfall, a blank page, an empty canvas, a fresh lump of clay, a package of yeast—you get the picture. The year is new and open and ripe with possibilities and potential. It makes all those above sayings come to mind…along with—Be the Change! Just Do It! Carpe Diem!

And, carpe means to pluck and doesn’t that sound luscious? Like plucking a ripe fruit? The year is ours to do just that! Carpe Diem!

So, now that it’s here—what do we want to do with it? A whole year is ours, again, hopefully—all twelve months, 52 weeks, 365 days, 8760 hours, 525,600 minutes or 31,536,000 seconds.

What shall we do with all that time?

If you are like 45% of the country’s population you make resolutions. And if you are like the majority of those people you have infrequent success! So, perhaps (myself included) we are going about this all wrong.

Resolutions, according to Merriam-Webster, are acts of solving problems. That sounds pretty negative to me. Why is life—and what we do with it—a problem?

Full moon rising over Langley, promising fulfillment in the new year. (photo by David Welton)

Instead of finding things to resolve or change, like losing weight or quitting a habit, maybe we need to give our thinking a positive twist and shake things up a bit. We’ll get the end result—a more healthful life, a more stable financial outlook, pride in our work, stronger relationships, a new artistic outlet—but we can acquire those things in a better way, perhaps, than how we’ve tried in the past.

Instead of resolutions—maybe we can think of giving ourselves challenges, or goals, or the allowance to try something new. I don’t want to live by what I should do;I’d rather see each day as a chance to move my life forward…to make that difference, to be that change, to think global and act local…all while allowing myself to grow.

And if I “fail”? Big deal!

I’ve tried something new and I’m failing forward. And I’ll try something else!

Want to lose weight and/or get more fit? Instead of focusing on deprivation and calorie-counting or cutting things out of your life (which is never fun and has never worked for me!) maybe, just maybe, it would be better (and certainly more fun) to add something new to it…like taking a Pilates or Yoga class, or walking along the miles and miles of beaches that are outside our back doors here on the island. Join a gym, join a dance group, join a kayaking club. You’re bound to lose some weight and get more fit. Seize the Day!

Improved circulation is a benefit from not just physical activity but from laughing, too…so, why not join some group that does laughter classes? Or join an improve group? There are such things! Maybe this is the year you find your inner artist…take a class, pick up a brush, make some jewelry, cook like Julia, write those poems! Go For It!

Healthful living isn’t just kicking up the physical aspect of your daily life…it’s nurturing the mental, spiritual, and emotional sides, too. Try replacing some of your daily intake (consumption of any substance you want to limit or stop) with something else, buy a new vegetable at the grocery, pick up some lentils, join a worship service, plant a garden, establish a routine of a walk after dinner with a friend or loved one, meditate. All good things for your body and soul.

“Beach Sunrise”, painting by Sandy Byers

On Whidbey—wonderful, wonderful Whidbey— there is a plethora of new things to try, see, do, join, accomplish, taste, visit, experience—all here on the island—all mere moments from home; things we can do solo or with our neighbors and soon-to-be new friends.

Not quite sure what you want to do or where to start? Pick up a local Island County guide and get started. And then check in with Whidbey Life Magazine to see what is going on around the island. There are groups that discuss books, knit together, work on stained glass, critique writing, host wine pairings. There are jam sessions and sing-alongs, theater and hiking groups, whale and bird watchers, beach combers, boat builders, dancers, musicians, gourmet diners, pottery throwers…and the lists go on and on and on.

I’ve said it before…Whidbey is like a fabulous Day Camp for adults (and kids, too)…there is just SO MUCH to do here!

I think my only resolution this year will be not to make resolutions. And, instead, vow to explore what this lovely island has to offer. I think everyone benefits when they stretch themselves a bit…not just physically, but mentality, too and it’s time to do just that. Brush off the old year and get on with the new. Organize. Support. Volunteer. Grow. Learn.

So, let’s stretch our bodies and our minds and let’s get out and walk some of the 196 miles of shoreline in Island County and perhaps we’ll see the orcas, gray whales and pairs of bald eagles that share this gorgeous natural area with us.

Let’s learn something new! Spend an hour or more at one of the local libraries or local book shops and pick up some books on something that you’ve been meaning to look into more closely. Perhaps you’ve been dreaming of wine making. Read up and then go visit all the local wineries (there are nine at last count).

Or maybe you have a nose for coffee? Read up on Juan Valdez and then go tour the (four) coffee roasters on the island that annually roast nearly 800,000 pounds of coffee. Want to learn more about mussels? You’ve come to the right island as over 2,000,000 pounds of Penn Cove Mussels are grown and harvested each year and are readily available in our many restaurants and grocery stores!

As the quote from Etienne de Grellet states, “I shall pass this way but once…Let me not defer nor neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.” So, grab this year by the horns and instead of saying we are going to “do something”…be specific. Spell it out. Take a leap and sign up for that class in glass blowing or piano, painting or writing. You might be surprised at what comes out at the other end of that instrument!

Don’t listen to the voices in your head that say you can’t do it. Prove them wrong! Give something new a try!

However, that said, not quite ready to start dabbling on a canvas or tickling the ivories quite yet? How about easing in and going to a gallery or special exhibit and learning about a new artist or medium or going to one of the many venues around the island that showcase musicians on a steady and very regular basis.

And thinking you need someone along for the ride to share your walks and life with? Adopt a pet! You’ll both benefit! Or are you feeling like you need to give back? There are hundreds of places that would love to have your volunteering spirit (time, expertise and/or financial backing)!

So, here we are…the New Year is ahead of us just waiting for us to do something with it! There are no guarantees in life, so make each day special. Mae West said, “You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” So, make each day count. Go to bed at the end of each day knowing you made a difference—however small. That smile you shared with that person in line might have made their day.

If you don’t love what you do—perhaps now is the time to change that. Or at least start taking those baby steps towards that goal. What you think about, you bring about. So, Go For It! Just Do It! Seize the Day!

As for me, I’m going to go seize the year…Carpe Noctem … one glorious day at a time on and around this beautiful and bountiful rock that is our home. HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Les McCarthy is an author, tutor, life coach, and IPPY bronze medalist for her yearly “Healthy Living ~ Healthy Life: 365 Days of Nutrition and Health for the Family” calendars. She is a recent transplant to the island and is busy loving every glorious moment while tending to the needs of her geriatric fur factory and local deer, squirrels and slugs.

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WLM stories and blogs are copyrighted and all rights are reserved. Linking is permitted. To request permission to use or reprint content from this site, email info@whidbeylifemagazine.org.

December 31, 2014
One Year of Whidbey Island life in pictures | David Welton

BY DAVID WELTON
Whidbey Life Magazine Contributor
Dec. 31, 2014

David Welton captures the Whidbey community in thousands of images, here are some of his top picks that show life on the island over the last 12 months. Some photos were part of features or photos essays published online or in print for Whidbey Life Magazine in 2014 and links to the original stories are below the photo.

Hands in the air as we zoom into 2015 at the Whidbey Island Area Fair. See more in this photo essay by David Welton, “Photos from the 2014 Whidbey Island Area Fair.”

Dalan Abernathy, age 4, from Freeland, gazes into a glass ball at Seafloat Scramble. The annual Seafloat Scramble in Langley brings a big crowd of kids and adults letting their inner kids run to find beautiful blown glass globes provided by Callahan’s Firehouse. This year’s Scramble is January 3. See more photos from 2014 click here.

A marimba player from Ruzivo starts the dancing at the July Summer Street Dance’s put on by Goosefoot at the Bayview Cash Store. Read more in this blog by Audrey Neubauer, “Neighbors Dancing in the Streets or in the Cash Store at Bayview.”

Erin Wilkies’s daughters and their Boston Terriers compete in the annual Mutt Strut at Bayview Corner. See this photo essay by David Welton, “Mutts Strut in Style at Bayview Corner this Weekend.”

Chef Scott Fraser shares his culinary delight, goat cheesecake, at Frasers Gourmet Hideaway in Oak Harbor. Scott and his restaurant were featured in the Fall/Winter 2014 print magazine, to see this story download the pdf or find the print magazine at these locations.

Maureen “Momo” Freehill with Heidi Sebastian, Sommer Joy Albertson, and Jeanette Eveland flashdance at the Clinton Ferry dock for “One Billion Rising.” See this photo essay by David Welton, “Local Dancers greet Commuters in Clinton to Promote “One Billion Rising,”

Karl Olsen makes beautiful music in front of the colorful stained glass at Trinity Lutheran Church. Read more in this story by Russell Clepper, “The Next Door Troubadour: Karl Olsen Music Minister turned Globetrotting Folksinger.”

Realism painter Rob Schouten poses in front of a new painting “Earth.” More on Rob in this feature by Betty Freeman, “Making a Living While Living for Art.”

Eyes gleaming, driver Colin Campbell gives it a go in Bob Bowling’s rustic drag racer in the annual Soup Box Derby on First Street in Langley. See more photos in this photo essay by David Welton, “Langley’s Soup Box Derby Rolls.”

Langley’s first annual Pride Parade brings out a crowd of participants and supporters. See more photos in this photo essay by David Welton, “Whidbey Island’s First Pride Parade,” and in this story by Katie Woodzick, “Jubilation in the Streets: Whidbey Island’s first Pride Parade.”

Washington Scottish Pipe Band marches down Second Street at the 5th Annual Holiday Parade in Langley

Crossing the finish line nose first in the Pawz 5k by the Sea sponsored by the Animal Hospital by the Sea.

Georgia Gerber’s bunnies dance in front of the rhododendrons. Read more in Dianna MacLeod’s story, ” Spring in a Sculptor’s Garden: Georgia Gerber Dances with Rabbits.”

The scarecrow at Whidbey Island Winery is a new September addition since the Fall harvest story by Susan Wenzel from 2013, “Clippers and Chatter – the Sweet Sound of Grape Harvest Volunteers at Whidbey Island Winery.”

Tom Lindsay paints with bubbles at sunrise. Read more and see more photos in this story by Martha McCartney “From Leprechauns to Soap Bubbles: I Reckon a Fella Could Do That.”

Larry Dobson demonstrates his zest for life in his aerial swing. Read more and see more photos in this story by Russell Clepper, “The Friendly Giant: Trying to Save the Planet While Having a Blast.”

A celebratory moment, Linda Good accepts the first WLM Arts Grant in behalf of Island Strings and shares a hug with former student Gloria Ferry Brennan at the WLM Launch Party celebrating the first print magazine in May 2014. For more photos from the party, click here. To read more about Linda read this feature by Russell Clepper, “Creating a Good Story: Part 2, Linda.”

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CLICK HERE to read more entertaining and informative WLM stories and blogs.

WLM stories and blogs are copyrighted and all rights are reserved. Linking is permitted. To request permission to use or reprint content from this site, email info@whidbeylifemagazine.org.

December 31, 2014